New York legally committed to generating 70% of its electricity from renewables by 2030, and 100% carbon-free power by 2040. Nearly a decade later, the state is way behind schedule.

In the first episode of Modo Energy Presents, our new series of video documentaries, we examine why building renewable energy in New York is so difficult - despite strong political support and ambitious targets.

We explore:

• Transmission bottlenecks between upstate and downstate.
• The NYISO interconnection queue, now holding ~27 GW of projects.
• Why 90% of proposed projects never reach commercial operations.
• Interconnection costs that can account for 60% of total project CapEx.
• Offshore wind policy uncertainty.
• Capacity market dynamics that favour dispatchable generation.
• And why battery energy storage economics differ from ERCOT and California.

Featuring Peter Berini, Director of Industry at Modo Energy, this episode compares New York’s “cluster study” interconnection model with ERCOT’s faster “connect and manage” approach - and asks whether structural reform is necessary to hit renewable targets.

A Modo Energy production.

Music licensed via Artlist.

Stock footage licensed via Pond5 (via Everly).

This documentary is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

New York legally committed to generating 70% of its electricity from renewables by 2030, and 100% carbon-free power by 2040. Nearly a decade later, the state is way behind schedule.

In the first episode of Modo Energy Presents, our new series of video documentaries, we examine why building renewable energy in New York is so difficult - despite strong political support and ambitious targets.

We explore:

• Transmission bottlenecks between upstate and downstate.
• The NYISO interconnection queue, now holding ~27 GW of projects.
• Why 90% of proposed projects never reach commercial operations.
• Interconnection costs that can account for 60% of total project CapEx.
• Offshore wind policy uncertainty.
• Capacity market dynamics that favour dispatchable generation.
• And why battery energy storage economics differ from ERCOT and California.

Featuring Peter Berini, Director of Industry at Modo Energy, this episode compares New York’s “cluster study” interconnection model with ERCOT’s faster “connect and manage” approach - and asks whether structural reform is necessary to hit renewable targets.

A Modo Energy production.

Music licensed via Artlist.

Stock footage licensed via Pond5 (via Everly).

This documentary is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.

The UK has a bold target to triple solar capacity within a single parliament, but the path from ambition to deployment is riddled with grid bottlenecks, workforce shortages, and revenue uncertainty.

In this episode, Ed Porter sits down with Matt Black Managing Director of IG renewables and Chair of Solar Energy UK, to unpack the realities of delivering large-scale solar in Great Britain, from the aftermath of the connections queue reform to the future role of co-located batteries, the Warm Homes Plan, and what it actually takes to build a solar career in 2025.

Chapters

• 00:00:03 Connection Reform Overview
• 00:07:30 Gate Two Shakeout
• 00:09:00 Solar M&A Activity
• 00:13:30 Strategic Energy Planning
• 00:18:30 Co-Located Solar Storage
• 00:22:00 60GW Delivery Challenge
• 00:24:30 EPC Workforce Gap
• 00:28:30 CFD PPA Merchant Revenue
• 00:33:00 Balcony Solar Growth
• 00:37:47 Warm Homes Plan
• 00:45:00 Future Solar Deployment Shift

#SolarEnergy #EnergyTransition #RenewableEnergy #CleanPower #UKEnergy

The UK has a bold target to triple solar capacity within a single parliament, but the path from ambition to deployment is riddled with grid bottlenecks, workforce shortages, and revenue uncertainty.

In this episode, Ed Porter sits down with Matt Black Managing Director of IG renewables and Chair of Solar Energy UK, to unpack the realities of delivering large-scale solar in Great Britain, from the aftermath of the connections queue reform to the future role of co-located batteries, the Warm Homes Plan, and what it actually takes to build a solar career in 2025.

Chapters

• 00:00:03 Connection Reform Overview
• 00:07:30 Gate Two Shakeout
• 00:09:00 Solar M&A Activity
• 00:13:30 Strategic Energy Planning
• 00:18:30 Co-Located Solar Storage
• 00:22:00 60GW Delivery Challenge
• 00:24:30 EPC Workforce Gap
• 00:28:30 CFD PPA Merchant Revenue
• 00:33:00 Balcony Solar Growth
• 00:37:47 Warm Homes Plan
• 00:45:00 Future Solar Deployment Shift

#SolarEnergy #EnergyTransition #RenewableEnergy #CleanPower #UKEnergy

AI data center power demand is surging, solar prices are collapsing, and power markets like ERCOT are changing fast.

Power trading strategies that worked just three years ago are now obsolete as markets transform in real-time.

In this episode, Alex sits down with Terry Embury, Vice President of Trading and Market Operations at AES Clean Energy. The conversation explores the shift in electricity markets driven by solar proliferation, the evolving value proposition of battery storage across different markets, strategic lessons from decades of power trading experience, and how Terry's team is positioning themselves at the intersection of renewable energy and the data center boom that's driving unprecedented electricity demand growth.

Chapters

- 00:00 Clean Energy Timing Problem

- 02:03 AES Company Overview

- 04:45 Battery Storage California

- 06:38 ERCOT Duck Curve

- 08:15 Solar Trading Blocks

- 09:45 Battery Revenue Streams

- 12:21 CAISO vs ERCOT Batteries

- 14:25 Market Volatility Dynamics

- 15:30 Offtake Agreements Explained

- 17:21 Belfield 500MW Battery

- 18:45 Biggest Trade Ever

- 21:00 Wind Solar Portfolio Management

- 22:14 24/7 Clean Energy Matching

- 25:11 Renewable Coverage Pricing

- 26:07 Nuclear Energy Outlook

- 28:21 SMR Timeline Concerns

- 30:56 Nuclear Submarine Stories

- 34:52 Transmission Constraint Challenges

- 38:19 Data Center Generation Gap

- 40:05 AI Growth Inflection Point

- 42:00 Battery Market Opportunity

- 44:39 AI Prompt Engineering Careers

- 46:14 Trading Desk Culture Shift

- 48:29 Managing Young Traders

- 50:10 Head of Trading Daily Routine

- 51:08 Worst Trading Day Story

- 53:24 AES Future Announcements

- 54:55 Contrarian Energy Market Views

#AI #DataCenters #Solar #ERCOT #Batteries #CleanEnergy #Nuclear

AI data center power demand is surging, solar prices are collapsing, and power markets like ERCOT are changing fast.

Power trading strategies that worked just three years ago are now obsolete as markets transform in real-time.

In this episode, Alex sits down with Terry Embury, Vice President of Trading and Market Operations at AES Clean Energy. The conversation explores the shift in electricity markets driven by solar proliferation, the evolving value proposition of battery storage across different markets, strategic lessons from decades of power trading experience, and how Terry's team is positioning themselves at the intersection of renewable energy and the data center boom that's driving unprecedented electricity demand growth.

Chapters

- 00:00 Clean Energy Timing Problem

- 02:03 AES Company Overview

- 04:45 Battery Storage California

- 06:38 ERCOT Duck Curve

- 08:15 Solar Trading Blocks

- 09:45 Battery Revenue Streams

- 12:21 CAISO vs ERCOT Batteries

- 14:25 Market Volatility Dynamics

- 15:30 Offtake Agreements Explained

- 17:21 Belfield 500MW Battery

- 18:45 Biggest Trade Ever

- 21:00 Wind Solar Portfolio Management

- 22:14 24/7 Clean Energy Matching

- 25:11 Renewable Coverage Pricing

- 26:07 Nuclear Energy Outlook

- 28:21 SMR Timeline Concerns

- 30:56 Nuclear Submarine Stories

- 34:52 Transmission Constraint Challenges

- 38:19 Data Center Generation Gap

- 40:05 AI Growth Inflection Point

- 42:00 Battery Market Opportunity

- 44:39 AI Prompt Engineering Careers

- 46:14 Trading Desk Culture Shift

- 48:29 Managing Young Traders

- 50:10 Head of Trading Daily Routine

- 51:08 Worst Trading Day Story

- 53:24 AES Future Announcements

- 54:55 Contrarian Energy Market Views

#AI #DataCenters #Solar #ERCOT #Batteries #CleanEnergy #Nuclear

The UK's electricity grid connection queue ballooned to over a Terawatt of projects - far more than the country will ever need, creating delays for renewable energy developers trying to bring solar, wind, and battery storage online. Connections reform was designed to clear this gridlock, but delays in the process are now pushing back critical infrastructure decisions that could make or break the UK's 2030 clean energy targets.

In this episode, Ed Porter speaks with Ed Birkett, New Projects Director at Low Carbon.The conversation explores the current state of connections reform, the challenges facing renewable energy developers navigating the new grid offer system, the critical role of battery storage co-location with solar projects, and why substation siting decisions have become the new bottleneck for getting clean energy projects built on time.

Chapters

- 00:00 - Introduction and connections reform recap

- 01:44 - The 1,000GW grid queue crisis

- 02:04 - Transmission versus distribution network access differences

- 03:21 - Gate one and gate two grid offers explained

- 04:06 - Current status of gate two notifications

- 05:28 - Connection date uncertainty and timeline delays

- 07:39 - September deadline for final grid offers

- 09:15 - Co-location of batteries with solar projects

- 11:42 - Why Ofgem removed batteries from solar schemes

- 14:58 - Network capacity constraints and upgrade costs

- 17:25 - Active network management and curtailment solutions

- 20:33 - Distribution versus transmission network capacity planning

- 23:47 - Industry response to battery removal decisions

- 26:19 - The business case for solar-battery portfolios

- 29:51 - Substation siting challenges and planning delays

- 32:44 - National Grid's role in new infrastructure

- 35:16 - Summer solar generation and negative prices

- 38:16 - How solar projects price curtailment risk

- 40:10 - Next steps for connections reform implementation

- 42:02 - Critical path issues for 2030 delivery

- 43:24 - Contrarian view: using existing networks better

The UK's electricity grid connection queue ballooned to over a Terawatt of projects - far more than the country will ever need, creating delays for renewable energy developers trying to bring solar, wind, and battery storage online. Connections reform was designed to clear this gridlock, but delays in the process are now pushing back critical infrastructure decisions that could make or break the UK's 2030 clean energy targets.

In this episode, Ed Porter speaks with Ed Birkett, New Projects Director at Low Carbon.The conversation explores the current state of connections reform, the challenges facing renewable energy developers navigating the new grid offer system, the critical role of battery storage co-location with solar projects, and why substation siting decisions have become the new bottleneck for getting clean energy projects built on time.

Chapters

- 00:00 - Introduction and connections reform recap

- 01:44 - The 1,000GW grid queue crisis

- 02:04 - Transmission versus distribution network access differences

- 03:21 - Gate one and gate two grid offers explained

- 04:06 - Current status of gate two notifications

- 05:28 - Connection date uncertainty and timeline delays

- 07:39 - September deadline for final grid offers

- 09:15 - Co-location of batteries with solar projects

- 11:42 - Why Ofgem removed batteries from solar schemes

- 14:58 - Network capacity constraints and upgrade costs

- 17:25 - Active network management and curtailment solutions

- 20:33 - Distribution versus transmission network capacity planning

- 23:47 - Industry response to battery removal decisions

- 26:19 - The business case for solar-battery portfolios

- 29:51 - Substation siting challenges and planning delays

- 32:44 - National Grid's role in new infrastructure

- 35:16 - Summer solar generation and negative prices

- 38:16 - How solar projects price curtailment risk

- 40:10 - Next steps for connections reform implementation

- 42:02 - Critical path issues for 2030 delivery

- 43:24 - Contrarian view: using existing networks better

Power grids are shifting from reactive crisis management to proactive simulation and planning. Utilities can now rehearse extreme weather events, wildfire scenarios, and load surges before they happen, fundamentally changing how the grid stays reliable.

Alejandro De Diego speaks with Marcus Johansson, Senior Executive - Wildfire Mitigation, Digital Transformation, Grid Modernization at Xcel Energy. The conversation explores how digital twins, virtual replicas of the physical grid, are enabling utilities to run simulations of weather events, wildfire scenarios, and increasing electricity demand.

You can watch or listen to new episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

Transmission is a Modo Energy production. Your host is Alejandro De Deigo - VP of Insights.

Modo Energy helps the owners, operators, builders, and financiers of battery energy storage understand the market — and make the most out of their assets. Want all the latest power market news? Sign up for our free Weekly Dispatch newsletter: https://bit.ly/TheWeeklyDispatch

Chapters

- 00:03 - Introduction

- 01:45 - Xcel Energy Overview

- 03:05 - Grid Modernization Role

- 04:26 - Digital Twin Technology

- 05:27 - Analytics vs Simulations

- 06:15 - Wildfire Mitigation Strategies

- 07:28 - Advanced Metering Infrastructure

- 08:13 - Predictive Maintenance Applications

- 08:42 - Data Integration Challenges

- 10:29 - Distribution Management Systems

- 13:17 - AI Load Forecasting

- 14:20 - Peak Demand Management

- 16:01 - Sustainability Journey

- 16:28 - Energy Transition Motivation

- 17:10 - Infrastructure Investment Plans

- 18:22 - Transmission Focus Areas

- 18:58 - Join Xcel Energy

- 19:18 - Contrarian Industry Views

- 20:11 - Service Orchestration Mindset

- 20:44 - Build vs Buy

- 21:25 - Future Generation Optimism

Power grids are shifting from reactive crisis management to proactive simulation and planning. Utilities can now rehearse extreme weather events, wildfire scenarios, and load surges before they happen, fundamentally changing how the grid stays reliable.

Alejandro De Diego speaks with Marcus Johansson, Senior Executive - Wildfire Mitigation, Digital Transformation, Grid Modernization at Xcel Energy. The conversation explores how digital twins, virtual replicas of the physical grid, are enabling utilities to run simulations of weather events, wildfire scenarios, and increasing electricity demand.

You can watch or listen to new episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

Transmission is a Modo Energy production. Your host is Alejandro De Deigo - VP of Insights.

Modo Energy helps the owners, operators, builders, and financiers of battery energy storage understand the market — and make the most out of their assets. Want all the latest power market news? Sign up for our free Weekly Dispatch newsletter: https://bit.ly/TheWeeklyDispatch

Chapters

- 00:03 - Introduction

- 01:45 - Xcel Energy Overview

- 03:05 - Grid Modernization Role

- 04:26 - Digital Twin Technology

- 05:27 - Analytics vs Simulations

- 06:15 - Wildfire Mitigation Strategies

- 07:28 - Advanced Metering Infrastructure

- 08:13 - Predictive Maintenance Applications

- 08:42 - Data Integration Challenges

- 10:29 - Distribution Management Systems

- 13:17 - AI Load Forecasting

- 14:20 - Peak Demand Management

- 16:01 - Sustainability Journey

- 16:28 - Energy Transition Motivation

- 17:10 - Infrastructure Investment Plans

- 18:22 - Transmission Focus Areas

- 18:58 - Join Xcel Energy

- 19:18 - Contrarian Industry Views

- 20:11 - Service Orchestration Mindset

- 20:44 - Build vs Buy

- 21:25 - Future Generation Optimism